The MYA Xxxx

What does the MYA do for You?

25Good reasons to be a Member – and there are many more. This just a glimpse of the many services which the MYA provides for its Members. For you personally

• The MYA provides a Knowledge Base through its Web Site, (www. mya-uk.org.uk ). Here is a wealth of information, particularly useful if you are a beginner. Explore Yacht Racing & Tuning Sections – enough advice here on starting, sail trimming, and sailing the course, to give you confidence. And here too are the Racing Rules of Sailing. In the Technical Documents section you will find a Sail Measuring Guide, Class Rules for all the MYA administered classes, measurement forms, changes of ownership forms and more. • Acquaint Magazine; which carries articles for beginners and experienced helms and is sent by post to every member. All the articles from Acquaint (2007 – 2011) are stored on the MYA web site (in the Knowledge Base) for you to explore and download. They range from the art of vane sailing to technical comparisons of IOM designs. • MYA Yearbook – the Calendar for the year and all the clubs in your area. Also sent by post to every member, so that you can plan you year.

• An extensive interactive Web Site with up to the minute news of events, including the Racing Locker, and features such as Local Contacts, Find a Club, Racing Calendar and Members’ Forum. • Sales pages on the web site; advertise your boat and equipment free of charge. • Provision of personal sail numbers - the same for all your boats, saving the messy business of changing sail numbers; valid for five years. • Provision of a list of clubs and of their localities. Allows you to change your details on line. • Provision of training workshops at local level. Expert helms give their advice on matters from tuning to race management.

For the club skipper

• Racing Calendar. MYA provides an annual racing calendar of District, Open, National and International events. • Provides support through a network of District Officers • Trains race teams – getting it right at local as well as national events • Leagues. Organises leagues, and individual competitions, rewarding winners with suitable trophies. • Advises on Health and Safety at club level. • Provides starting tapes, and other advice for new clubs. • • Ranking. Administering national ranking systems in UK.

• Training and administration of MYA Measurers nation-wide, making it easy for you to have your new boat measured locally, and ensuring sure everyone races on a level playing field. • Providing suitable Third Party Insurance. • A voice upwards into every level of model yachting, through District Councillors and the MYA Council. Bring your ideas to the Annual General meeting. • Provision at that AGM of a Trade Show; see the latest boats and equipment, talk to designers and builders – lots of friendly advice.

RG65s and Fiestas racing together at the Springbok club. Photo: Charles Smith

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IOM Nationals 2013 Photo: Damian Ackroyd

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Feature

Class Review The classes Promoting the sport

• Rewarding individual service to the MYA with suitable trophies and awards. • Encouraging innovative design through Chris Dicks Award. • Organising events at the Dinghy Show to promote model yachting to a wider public. • Running an annual Trade Show.

The International world of Model Yachting

• Through the International Radio Sailing Association (IRSA) and through the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) your voice is heard at international level. • The MYA organises National and International events. A lot of expertise is needed at this level and the MYA provides it. • Technical agreements. Through the he work of the technical team at UK and at international level – we get agreements internationally, clarifying both sailing rules and measurement rulings for international classes.

The International ISAF – IRSA Recognised classes are A, Marblehead, 10 Rater and IOM. UK Classes currently ‘recognised’ by the MYA are the 36” and 6 Metre. There are a number of other boats listed by the MYA under its Combined Strengths initiative, and many of these together with the International and recognised classes are described below, beginning with the oldest established classes.

A little background to the ‘rules’

When racing in full sized yachts ‘took off’ in the late 1800s and early 1900s the fleets where of mixed shapes and sizes and the handicapper had the unenviable job of allocating a time allowance to each boat so that a well sailed ‘little un’ could claim its time allowance and beat a badly sailed ‘big un’. Clearly a nightmare for the handicapper - and a recipe for much ill feeling amongst the skippers! The solution was to create rules under which each boat was measured and the figures put into a formula. The output of that formula divided the fleets into classes and the need for time allowances disappeared, whilst allowing designers the liberty to tweak their designs and get the best out of any given class. Early attempts at creating that formula were not always successful, and were modified or replaced over the years. Perhaps the most successful formula was the so called Metre Rule produced in 1906 for the 1908 Olympics and this has been used with some modifications down the years. The formula produced a single number – 5, 6, 10, 12, 15 and so on. Thus a boat measured under the Metre rules might have a formula producing the figure 12, the well know 12 Metre of Americas cup fame for example, but to be clear, 12 was simply the product of a bit of maths – not the length of the boat which in this case would be around 72 feet. Nevertheless all the 12 Metre boats raced together without handicap.

Model builders follow suit

Model yacht racing followed the same trend and our early classes were scaled down from the full sized rules, at say, 1 or 2inches to the foot. In many cases the model yacht racing of the day aped the customs of its full sized counterparts. Indeed some models were built specifically to test ideas for the full sized world. It was really not until the 1930s that models were introduced without regard to the full sized rules. Since then of course we have seen the introduction of the 36” class, Marblehead, IOM and others, each of which has to be measured under their own rules which allow designers to work their magic within limits, just as the early designers did.

International 10 Rater

The 10 Rater grew out of the Length & Sail Area Rule adopted for full sized craft in 1887 – models followed at 1in = 1ft. In his 1923 book Model Sailing Yachts, Edward Hobbs, first Secretary of the MYRA (later to be the MYA) describes the early 10s as ‘some of the fastest craft afloat.’ In the 1937 MYA minutes, the 10 Rater was the most popular Class with over 300 boats registered. Not numerous today, the 10 Rater is a specialist boat appealing to the skipper who wants to sail a really big yacht. 10s are a development boats; modern designs producing a boat typically 1.60m overall (around 5’2”) and carrying about 1000sq inches of sail on a tall rig. To see a fleet of them reaching fast in a strong wind is quite an experience. The modern trend is towards narrow-ish hulls, long overhangs, and maximum

IOM Worlds at Isreal Photo: Hanneke Gillissen

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Racing at the Round Pond, Kensington. Photo: Charles Smith sail areas, in contrast to the pre-war boats which tended to be somewhat shorter, beamier and under less canvas. The measurements are quite straightforward, trading off Length against Sail Area and details of the formula are available on the MYA Knowledge Base. Any boat which complies with the rules may be used in 10 Rater competition and we regularly see Marbleheads sailed with some success, under very big rigs. Competition: There is local interclub competition at MYSA, Hampton Court and elsewhere, and an International Championship annually at different venues, often in the UK. It is regularly attended by competitors from other parts of Europe, particularly from France where there are strong fleets. Class Registrar: Phil Playle. 01376 339362 Class rules and Measurement forms: MYA Web Sit / Members Area/ Technical Documents Web site: No separate web site Interested Clubs: MYSA Kensington, Hampton Court, Frensham Pond, Poole and others.

International A Class

The class originated in 1922 when major Heckstall Smith proposed the A Class rule which was derived from the full sized 6 metre rule. Originally the free sailing A’s were under Braine control and after 1947 vane control became universally accepted as the way to

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go. Radio ‘A’ Class grew out of the need of to carry the bulky radio, up to 9 lbs, equipment, which became available in the 50s and 60s. Clearly a substantial hull was necessary and the only suitable boat at the time was the A, which for a period was christened the ‘Q’ class or 15 Rater when radio controlled. True radio ‘A’s developed as the now familiar lightweight radio equipment became available. The A is a development boat within the A Class rules, typically producing boats about 6’6 long, weighing between 12 and 30kg, with No1 rigs standing at about 8’0. Modern trends are towards somewhat lighter weights and carbon fibre construction, but the class retains a strong feeling for its classic origins. It has a wide following in the UK both in radio and vane forms including a number of events for classic examples. Annual championships generally alternate between the Gosport, Fleetwood and the Poole Clubs with the PRACC series being promoted by Linda and David Munro (from Poole) being mainly responsible for the RA revival in the UK Class Registrar: Bill Green. 0121 705 4478 Web site: http://radioaclass. wordpress.com/ Interested Clubs: There are interested clubs in most parts of the country with strong fleets at Gosport, Hampton Court,

Th e shape of a modern A Boat. Th is is Chris Durant’s Powder Monkey. Photo: Charles Smith Fleetwood Poole Greenock, Ashton Quays, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bournville, Huntingdon, Chelmsford, Coalhouse Fort, Swanley, Woodspring and Yeovil etc. Class rules and Measurement forms: MYA web site: Members Area/ Technical Documents More information: Read Robert Hobbs history of the class 1001 International A Class Yachts Bumble Publications. 02380 255896

6 Metre - MYA recognised Class

This boat retains a strong feeling for its classic origins. The first boats were based on the modified (full size) 6 Metre rule of 1933 – 39, and scaled at 1 1/2 inches to the foot. The rating formula will interest skippers keen on exploring classic design – it includes the difference between skin girth and chain girth for example – but should not worry newcomers to the class because second hand and new builds are available and Bill will be happy to advise.

Tension at the start. A Vanes at Gosport. Photo: Charles Smith

Racing at Bournville. Th ree elegant 6s on their way Acquaint © MYA Mar 2013 to the windward mark. Photo: Charles Smith

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Th e Marblehead, the F1 of Model yachting. Photo: Charles Smith

A development class, typical boats are about 60 inches (1.5m) overall, weigh around 26lb (12kg) and carry some 1000-1150 square inches of sail. Modern designs include the Roccoco and Ravenna (Bantock) and Drisky (Ackroyd/Taylor). Southwater Dabblers has a class of classic Dolphines by Bob Underwood. Anyone wanting to sail a modern classic might well turn to the 6 Metre, and whilst competition is currently somewhat limited there is an annual championship for these attractive boats. Class Registrar: Bill C Green 0121 705 4478 Email biollgreen@ btinternet.com Class rules and Measurement forms: Members Area/Technical Documents Interested Clubs: Bournville, Broads, Clapham, Coalhouse Fort, Dovercourt, Greenock, Lee Valley, Paisley Bridge, Setley, Solent, Southwater Dabblers, Two Islands and others.

International Marblehead

The Marblehead originated at the Marblehead Yacht Club in Massachusetts, (legend has it that it was designed to fit across the back seat of a car), and it first appeared in the UK in the early thirties. Its design owed nothing to the ‘big boat’ rules of the day but produced a pure racing model. Often described as the Formula 1 of model yachting, the Marblehead is extremely fast both on and off the wind. As a development class, the boats average 1.28m (50”) overall and carry around 0.5161 sq m (800 sq inches) of sail. Maximum fin length at 700mm but the current trend is towards 600mm. Modern design trends are toward narrower beams, and great success has been had from both conventional and swing rigs, of which a maximum, of six is allowed at any one event although most skippers carry four. The modern radio boat has a strong following, with local and interclub competition (GAMES), National and European Championships, and a World Championship in 2014. Whilst the modern boats are highly technical there is also competition for older models – the ‘attic greyhounds’ and also for

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veteran skippers. Originating as a vane boat (radio was not used until the mid seventies) there is today a competition for Classic and Vintage Vane Marblehead’s and a National Vane Championship. Boats are available in complete and kit form, older boats whilst relatively inexpensive are good introductions to the Class at club level. Class Registrar: Phil Playle. 01376 339362 Web site: http://marbleheadsailing. wordpress.com/ Class rules and Measurement forms: MYA Web Site / Members Area/ Technical Documents Interested clubs: Marbleheads are sailed in many parts of the country. Note: The Marblehead may also be rigged as a dual purpose boat and sailed in 10 Rater competition. (There will be detailed article describing the development of the Marblehead in the Winter edition of Acquaint, Ed,)

competition are continuing to grow, somewhat overtaken by the popularity of the IOM at similar length, but 36s are attractive boats giving the skipper plenty of room for experiment. The Radio 36 has in recent years established a greater following than Vane, with good size fleets at Solent MYC, Coalhouse Fort and Bournville to name but a few. Sunday morning club meetings are attracting 10+ R36, that said the vane fleet at Gosport is

36” - MYA recognised Class

The pre-war 36” class began life in 1930 and rapidly reached some 700 boats. The rules are simple, requiring only length 37” (36” plus bumper), beam (9”), and draft (11”) to be measured, and restricting spars to wood or aluminium. With their moderate draft, 36s may be sailed in quite shallow and restricted waters, and with freedom in sail area they will also interest skippers who build their own rigs. Competition is available in both vane and radio forms; the vane boats carrying a skeg aft to help with course keeping, sometimes designed to be removable so that the same hull may also be used under radio competition. Numbers in both radio

Vane 36 by Mike Dann, this is Geckaroo very active with new boats appearing regularly mainly due to the many designs of Gosport local Mike Dann. Interest is also growing from the north with one or two boats at Fleetwood and the new Llandudno MYC also pushing the Vane 36 class. A two yearly vane competition is run against American skippers, sailed alternately here and in the USA, see report of the 2013 Challenge on page 27. Modern designs include Diversion & Gecko (Mike Dann), Raptor (Martin

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RG65

A modern 36” racing at Bournville. Photo: Peter Moore. Houlton) and Sybora (Martin Dovey) and a recent design by David Hollom. However, designs dating back to the early 80’s with Realistic (Chris Dicks) Graham Bantock’s Spartan and a series of boats by Alex Austin including Taxachun, Deductchun, Extenchun and Screw Loose, also are still being extremely competitive. The simplicity of the 36 rules has had the effect of encouraging more people to design and build their own yachts. The 36 class Register has now reached 1900 registrations since concept of the class Class registrar: Martin Dovey Email: [email protected] Class rules and Measurement forms: Members Area/Technical Documents Web site: no separate web site More information: Acquaint, Spring 2013.

RC Laser

The RC Laser is a strict one design 1054mm overall and will be very familiar to any skipper who has sailed the full sized version. The model is true to its Bruce Kirby design origins and is moulded in polyethylene by one builder, with the one design concept extending to hull, foils rigging and sails. It is available complete and packs flat into a tough purpose made travelling case. A full set of sails in includes A, B, C and D rigs, of which the B rig is standard and delivered with the boat along with a decent 2.4GHz radio set. There are few modifications allowed, largely concerned with running rigging but nothing which detracts from the one design concept meaning that the racing is more a test of the skippers

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Standard boat as delivered (minus carry case) – Photo Tim Long ability that his ability to buy the latest gear. There is a healthy class association who organise the racing and competition is available at club, district and national level with both District and Annual Championships and a Championship of Nations which is held every couple of years. More details UK Radio Controlled Laser: Association http://www.rclaser. org.uk/ Builders: Suppliers are listed at http://www.rclaser.org.uk/buy.php Membership secretary: John Park, see website Interested clubs: there is a national spread of clubs, details on the web site.

The RG65 began life in Argentina in 1950, brainchild of Juan Gherzi. As its name suggests it is 650mm overall and so fits readily into the average motor car fully rigged. Competitive fleets have grown up in Europe and the UK over the last two or three years and the class has attracted top British designers. Earlier boats were largely home built as hard chine boats from freely available plans. As the class developed round bilge versions appeared and today there are some 35 sets of plans freely available for download, together with a number of kits and completed boats. (See below) The rules are quite straightforward, (updated 2010) and boat is limited to three rigs with a maximum height of 110cm.

Home built in strip wood to a freely available plan.

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Th e Dragon Force one design RG65. Plain sails are available. Photo: Buzz Coleman

RG65 Dragon Force

Recent developments include the Dragon Force, a design by Mark Dicks now in mass production in ‘snap together’ form including a 2.4 GHz transmitter. Supported by the

MYA , Dragon Force is coming to be regarded as a one design fleet boat, providing a two sail starter boat at a sensible price, but also providing excellent competition amongst experienced skippers some of whom regard it as a match racing boat. Built to the RG 65 rule, Dragon Force is also fully capable of competing in races with the development boats and is eligible for international competition. Web site: International Class Association http://www.rg65.org.uk/ Rules: New Rules will be introduced in 2014 (available now) Plans from: The French RG65 association at http://rg65.free.fr/ Marine Modelling at http://www. marinemodelmagazine.com/article. aspx?a=3686 Traplet Publications http://www. trapletshop.com/gb/ Class Secretary: Mark Dicks. Email [email protected]

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Dragon Force: http:// dragonforce65.com Interested clubs. Several clubs have adopted the RG65 as a fleet boat Builders: Go to http://www.rg65. org.uk/ for the list of UK suppliers Forum: Dedicated RG65 Forum in several languages with useful building pics.http://www.rg65.org/forum/ viewforum.php?f=3&sid=2bde4e09046 b0780e785001f35133f22 Competition: Open and RG65 Championship

Micro Magic

The Micro Magic is essentially a smallish two-sail one-design at 530 mm overall. Complete with radio gear it is ready to sail ‘straight out of the box’ and is also available in kit form. The boat was originally developed in Europe, particularly in Germany, and there are large fleets throughout Europe and elsewhere. The current racing boat is a modified version of the

original Mk1 yacht and includes carbon fibre spars and mast, upgraded fittings and sails, modified fin and rudder. The racing rules only allow the use of two servos, although the design does allow for a third servo to be used as a jib adjuster. In the UK several clubs have adopted the Micro Magic as a starter boat but there is competition at club, open and International level with an UK Championship attracting some 25-35 boats. Whilst the standard

Two Micro Magics fight it out to windward. Photo: Charles Smith boat is competitive at club level, rig modifications are allowed in the rules and additional rigs are available to top skippers, who would normally take between three and five to an open meeting. Those of you who have visited the London Dinghy Show will have seen the Micro Magic demonstrated on the pool, providing competition for visiting youngsters.

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Footys racing in almost windless conditions. Th ey are equally happy when it’s blowing hard!

More details UK Micro Magic Association: http://magicmicro.org/news. php Micro Magic International Association: http://www. micromagic.info/

Footy Class

At one Foot (305 mm) overall Footy is the smallest of all our racing class but nevertheless the Class has a full program of open meetings each year, a strong Midlands League, an annual championship, a European Championship, and a following in America, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere. Racing skippers find the boat able to tack ‘under the mast’, and think nothing of ‘putting to sea’ in conditions which might deter other boats. The rules are simple requiring only that the boats fits a virtual box one foot (305mm) long by six inches (153mm) wide by one foot (305mm) deep with additional allowances for rudder and bowsprit. Sails are readily homemade and the class is enjoyed by skippers who have a taste for experimenting with design at low cost. Plans for successful designs are readily available through the Footy web site and it has been known to start a hull and finish it in bear form in about 20 minutes using Roger Stollery’s Supabug design. See a video on: http://www.sailfootyuk.com/supabug.html Modern designs include ICE and Supabug, Razor, Ranger 3, and others. Kits and complete boats are available from Peter Henderson: http://www.reflectionspjh.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ bmyc/footy_plans.htm Breaking Wind Worldwide for Half Pint Too: http://www. breakingwindboats.webs.com Class registrar: Peter Jackson Email: avro1@btinternet. com MYA Web Site / Members Area/Technical Documents Web site: http://www.sailfootyuk.com/ Interested Clubs: fleets of Footys are found in several parts of the country including : Abington Park MYC, Birmingham MYC, Clevedon & District MBC, Cotswold MBC, Guildford MYC, Hill Head Sailing Club, Southwater Dabblers MBC and others.

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The ISAF One Metre Class

Part 5. This article, kindly provided by Graham Bantock, brings us up-to-date with developments in the ISAF One Metre Class, and addresses a number of the technical issues including those of beam and stability. The 2012 European championship held on the sea in Cres, Croatia, gave two days of stronger winds and relatively big seas where boats were hard pressed in No 1 rig or more comfortable in No 2 rig. Following that the wind died slowly leaving only 13 races completed after 6 days of racing. Still, more than enough races to decide a champion. Many of the narrow designs were present. 20 per cent of the fleet were BRIT POPs with 10 or so other designs from the narrow camp. Possibly there would have been more sailors using narrow hulls but the perennial shortage of building capacity in the sport means transition to any new theme will usually be relatively slow. This is good as it gives time for new trends to be well evaluated against the existing fleet. In the aftermath of the 1997 world championship anything labelled a ‘skiff’ was desirable and the wider the better! Although there were several ‘fashion’ copies of the TS2 none came close in terms of performance. The TS2 was, in fact, a well designed system that worked well as a whole. This should ring warning bells both for owners and would be designers.... it is not one feature of a boat (the hull, the fin, the rig, etc) that renders it a success, it is invariably the integrated whole system. Likewise we should learn to not write off any design of hull (or whatever) just because it does not perform at world championship winning level. We should always seek to identify the elements that are good and bad and, more importantly, the way they work together. The record will show that BRIT POP has joined the ranks of great IOM designs by taking 6 of the top 11 places at the 2012 European championship and winning 9 of the 12 A fleet races. Of course, other designs took part in the event too!

The trend towards narrow

World championship winning boats in the IOM class have taken just 14 years to go from the 300 mm beam of the TS2 (1997) to barely over half that with BRITPOP (2011). But during that time there has been the opportunity to evaluate

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